New This Week on Blu-ray & DVD

New Blu-ray & DVD releases for the week include a Jackie Chan film, a Sam Worthington film, and some blues. It’s a small week for me so I’ll start with Chan’s latest.

Kung Fu Yoga sees a return of Jackie Chan and Stanley Tong, the director of famous Chan films Rumble in the Bronx and Supercop. Jackie is getting up there in age and you can see it in his last few movies. Here he plays an archeologist in China who travels to India to help find a lost Indian treasure. Like most Chan films it has action and some comedy and this also adds a Bollywood twist. Yep there is a dance routine! Chan may not be able to do all the stunts he once could, but he’s still a solid action star and fans of his will enjoy the movie. It won’t go down as one of his best, but if you haven’t seen one of his films in a while it’s fun enough. The CGI lion is a bit much, but that car chase seen was fun. Plus there are some beautiful women in it. I’m not sure where Disha Patani has been hiding, but she is stunning. I liked it a lot more than Railroad Tigers, another Jackie Chan film I watched recently. Not one of his best, but a solid filler till he gives us a better movie.

Next is The Hunter’s Prayer starring Sam Worthington. We’ve definitely seen this film many times before, but Worthington is decent enough and the film is at least watchable one time. Worthington plays a hitman who is hired to kill a woman, but decides he can’t. Of course the man who hired him wants revenge and still wants the woman dead. Like I said, we’ve seen this done before with many different actors in the Worthington role, but I didn’t hate it. I don’t think I’d ever watch it again, but if you like Sam you might like it. It’s pretty generic and I can’t think of anything cool in it, but I’ve seen a lot worse in the action genre lately.

Last we have I Am The Blues. I don’t think I knew any of the blues musicians in this documentary from Daniel Cross, but I overall enjoyed the music in it. Cross takes the viewer throughout Louisiana, the Mississippi Delta and all the Southern blues joints you can think of. What’s amazing is how many of these musicians are still playing well into their 70s and 80s. The film feels like a Robert Mugge documentary if you are familiar with his work. By that I mean that the film truly respects the talent it is showcasing and it feels more like a personal story because of it. You feel like you’re on the road seeing all these musicians, their lives, and the places they travel. I can see diehard blues fans eating this one up. Even if you aren’t big into the blues, it’s still a solid rock-doc that might get you interested in some of the music.